1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrochemical device with a π-conjugated metal complex immobilized substrate in an aqueous electrolyte.
2. Description of the Related Art
π-Conjugated metal complex immobilized substrates, in which π-conjugated metal complex molecules are immobilized on a substrate, have attracted attention, for example, as molecular wire materials in the field of molecular electronics. Among such substrates, π-conjugated metal complex immobilized substrates in which π-conjugated metal complex molecules are connected to a substrate via a π-conjugated molecular structure employ a high electron transfer ability of π-conjugated molecular structures and enable a high-speed electron transfer between the π-conjugated metal complex molecules and the substrates due to a redox reaction of the π-conjugated metal complex molecules. Redox behavior of a cobalt terpyridine complex in CH2Cl2 using a π-conjugated metal complex immobilized substrate, in which the cobalt terpyridine complex is immobilized on a substrate via azobenzene having a π-conjugated molecular structure, has been reported (Katsuhiko Kanaizuka, Masaki Murata, Yoshihiko Nishimori, Ichiro Mori, Kazuyuki Nishio, Hideki Masuda, Hiroshi Nishihara: Chem. Lett. 2005, 34, 534-535).
When the π-conjugated metal complex immobilized substrate, in which a connection to the substrate is performed via the π-conjugated molecular structure, is used in an electrochemical device together with a biological material, it is necessary to be able to observe the electron transfer in an aqueous electrolyte in order to preserve the structure and functions of the biological material. However, such an observation is difficult to perform.